Thursday, March 24, 2011

An afternoon with Sheffield’s Medieval Re-enactment Society

Will, one of the leaders of the Medieval Re-enactment Society, has just arrived in Fusion. He is casually dressed, and has brought a large bag with him, which he places down on one of the sofas with a clanking thump. One of the group reaches inside and pulls out a small axe. “Why do we never do axes?” he asks.

“Because I don’t have the correct insurance,” says Will. “The University only cover me for swords and bills.”

Clearly, the modern world has intruded on the battles of the Medieval Re-enactment Society, one of the 300 societies students can join at the University of Sheffield. The society was founded around 1994, and currently between eight to 25 people meet each Sunday to train with different weapons, and create costumes and chainmail.